


An Invisible Scream

by nocturne-of-forest (annathescavver)



Series: Nocturne does Linktober 2020 [6]
Category: The Legend of Zelda & Related Fandoms, The Legend of Zelda: The Ocarina of Time
Genre: Action, Angst, Blood and Injury, Fear, Friendship, Gen, Grief, Hurt/Comfort, Linktober 2020, Teamwork
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-26
Updated: 2020-10-26
Packaged: 2021-03-09 01:21:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,734
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27216352
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/annathescavver/pseuds/nocturne-of-forest
Summary: Reeling from the loss of his oldest friend, Link staggers out of the Forest Temple. He’s injured and yet so numb he can only stare at the blood on his clothes. It takes Navi, who knows how to deal with moments like this, to get him to stop and actually bandage his wounds.Then, in the quiet hours just before dawn, their much-needed rest is interrupted by something approaching from the woods. Only, neither of them can see it.
Relationships: Link & Navi (Legend of Zelda)
Series: Nocturne does Linktober 2020 [6]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1952161
Comments: 4
Kudos: 9





	An Invisible Scream

It was past midnight when they finally emerged from the Forest Temple. The moon was high in the sky. Link stared at it, dread like a heavy weight on his shoulders.

He wasn’t surprised, nor was he pleased, by the sight of it.

With heavy footsteps, he walked away from the great stone pedestal he was standing on. He didn’t have much of a destination in mind, save for eventually making his way towards Death Mountain. There was another temple there, he’d been told. And from the ring of literal fire circling the volcano, something had gone terribly wrong inside it.

“Link, wait.”

He turned, blinking, and saw the glow that was Navi hovering nearby. Her light, usually so bright it nearly blinded, was dim. She was worried.

“You’re hurt,” Navi continued. “Why don’t you sit down?”

He looked away, one hand coming up to tug at the bottom of his shirt. That’s when he noticed the blood. Cold and sticky, it smeared on his hands. For a long moment, he stared at it. Uncomprehending.

Then it came to him.

The stalfos, with its angry yellow eyes and its heavy steel blade. The giant, undead hands. The living vines and their saliva-coated teeth.

And, worst of all, the ghostly figure riding its horse in and out of the paintings in the temple’s basement. The figure had taunted him with such a sneer, and laughed when he missed or slipped up. It was if the figure knew every one of Link’s insecurities and knew just how much he was struggling to adjust to his new body.

His legs were too long. His body was too tall, too fast.  And he was so confused, still.

He wavered on his feet, blood pounding in his head. Feeling the familiar touch that was Navi, he let himself be guided back towards the temple where he sat, still staring at his hands.

Something was placed in his lap and he flinched.

“I’m sorry,” Navi said. “But you need to take care of those injuries. Come on, get your bandages out and that salve you bought.”

There was a moment of hesitation, and then Link did as she said. Following her instructions, he tended to every injury (even the small ones he did not recall getting), before wrapping them up tight. She inspected his work carefully and he let her, his eyes already turned towards the trees surrounding them.

_ I’m the Sage of the Forest. I’ve always kept an eye on this place, and now I’m going to protect it from Ganon at all costs. _

With a muffled sound, he brought his knees up to his chest and hid his face. Hot tears filled his eyes and he began to rock back and forth, the grief so complete, so encompassing, that he couldn't breathe.

_ We’ll always be friends. I will be with you as you continue your journey, my strength and power behind yours. You can do this, Link. I know you can. _

Navi lowered herself to the tree stump beside him and waited.

She waited a long while.

When Link finally looked up, she placed a gentle hand on his cheek. He took comfort from it, and, at her suggestion, he lay down on his side and closed his eyes. Sleep overcame him in a wave, and he dreamed of Saria.

\----

There was a wrongness in the air. It drew him from his sleep and had him reaching for the sword on his back even before he was fully awake. There was a smell of rot and blood and he recoiled, a cold feeling shocking him like ice. He knew that smell.

Sword ready in his hand, Link searched for the source. At the base of his spine he could feel a tremble, a thrill of fear that was so strong it made it feel sick.

The smell had filled the thick, stagnant air of the royal tomb, and hovered in the ruins of castle town. Along with the stink had come a faint shuffling sound, that of flesh on stone, and the weak, wet rattle of dying breaths.

The dead could walk. Reanimated, brought back by shadow magic, they wore wooden masks and attacked anything that came close. And their screams…

The hair on Link’s arms stood on end and he held back a shudder. Their screams were so loud, so very piercing, that upon hearing it, all he could do was hold his ears and shake.

“Link, where are you going?” Navi asked, emerging from where she’d been asleep in his hair. “It’s so late...why are - “

There was a sound. The quiet, uneven shuffle of rotten flesh.

Link whirled around, frantically searching the tall grass around him. Navi launched herself into the air and looked down from above.

There, to the left. No. To the right.

No?

The shuffling grew louder. Just as Navi screamed something, a force slammed into Link and sent him rolling into the grass. Before he could react, it landed on him and he felt long, jagged nails tear into his skin. Hot, burning pain lanced up his arm and he bit back a cry.

Navi hurried towards him. Her glow lit the night, illuminating trampled patches of grass and broken branches as Link and the redead fought each other.

“I can’t see it!” she said, voice thin and shrill. “It’s invisible. I’m sorry, Link, I don’t know what to do!”

Well, neither did he, really. The redead was fast, wriggling out of his grip any time he attempted to hold it still, and the fact that he couldn’t see it had him seething.

Teeth snapped near his neck and he threw himself backward. He landed hard, one of his elbows taking a brunt of his weight, and he stared up at the grass with wide, horrified eyes.

Everything was still. Straining, he tried to hear anything from it. The breathing, the crackling movements of its bones.

Then, the grass parted just to his left. He rolled away and came up swinging his sword. A thin arc of blood followed the steel blade and painted the grass crimson. The line of red marked the invisible redead, making it more difficult for it to hide. Noting this, Link advanced on it, only to stop as the creature uttered a loud, blood-curdling scream.

Link fell to his knees. His hands came up to his ears, clawing at them and then pulling at his hair. His head ached, ear drums ringing against the shrill, discordant tone. His stomach heaved and he pitched forward, digging his fingers into the soft soil beneath him.

The redead slammed into him again. This time, its teeth did not miss.

Navi screamed.

Link gasped as the agony burned through him. He tried to pull away, but a set of arms - feeling like nothing more than bone and sinew - held him in place. One bony hand tore into the fabric of his shirt, while the other seized his arm and held on. Its teeth sawed through his flesh and grated against bone.

There was a colder feeling, too. It was like dark, sluggish water filled with ice. It flowed through his veins, leaving him lightheaded and nauseous. The creature, this reanimated dead, was feeding on him.

Disgust bubbled in Link’s stomach and he twisted, but he was unable to free himself. The creature’s weight pulled him backward, and he stumbled, legs starting to shake.

Navi rushed forward, her light searing Link’s eyes with its intensity. The redead was likely blind, as all the others Link had ever faced had no eyes, but something about her presence caused it to shriek and loosen its hold.

Gritting his teeth against the pain, Link wrenched himself away. More fabric tore. He nearly lost his footing as the redead fell to the ground behind him.

He had no time to catch his breath. When the creature lurched towards him, he brought up the sword and pushed forward. He heard the sickening rip of meat as he ran the redead through. More old, rotting blood oozed out around the steel blade and dribbled down to the forest floor.

There was another cry from it, but this was much weaker. It thrashed for a moment, nearly ripping the sword from Link’s hand, before it collapsed. After making sure it was fully dead, Link lowered it to the ground and pulled the sword from its body. As he did so, the creature came into focus, the brown and black and red color of its body stark against the soft teal of the grass.

The forest was still. A soft breeze rustled the undergrowth and in the distance there was the howl of a wolf.

“What - “ Link’s voice failed him. He stumbled backward and fell against the tree stump. Deliriously, he mourned the blood he was smearing on it. Saria had loved that spot. “What was that?”

Navi hovered over the redead. “I don’t know, Link. I didn’t know that could happen.”

Link uttered an old Kokiri curse under his breath. “What was it doing here, anyway? I thought they were usually found in town.” He leaned his head back, his adrenaline rapidly fading. “Do you think...By Farore, Navi, do you think...it was someone who was lost out here?”

“I’m not sure.” She slowly came over to join him. Lowering herself so that she was standing on his upturned knee, she folded her arms over her stomach. Now that the fight was over, her glow was fading again. “Let’s get you cleaned up, okay? You could get really sick if you don’t clean those...bites up right.”

“Right. Okay.”

He reached for his pack and dug out the meager supplies he had. A roll of linen for bandages. A small tin of salve. Treating every cut, he winced as he felt the torn skin from where the redead had struck him. The wound on his shoulder was particularly painful, and he craned his neck to see it. His mouth went dry when he saw the bone.

After, he heaved himself to his feet. He was weak, now; the fight had drained him of much of his energy. Breaths coming in shaky gasps, he took one last look down at the tree stump - if he closed his eyes, he could still see Saria sitting there, alive and well - before heading away from the temple and into the woods.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading! The prompt for this one was "Redead/Gibdo."


End file.
